For many years, private tutoring was banned by law. However, it was possible for the rich to get tutors for their children nonetheless. But as the public's standard of living climbed higher, the use of private tutoring began to spread to the middle class.
        When I was a high school student in the mid-1990s, 70 percent of my classmates received private tutoring. These days, there is hardly any student who doesn't receive private tutoring.
        Now that private tutoring is legal, people worry that it will spread, causing a collapse of the public schools. Why do Korean students depend on private tutoring so much? Perhaps it is because the public schools are losing their competitive edge over private tutoring.
        Most Korean students are not content with public education because a student with only public education is handicapped when taking college entrance exams. It is not easy for students who are educated only in public school to enter a good university in Korea. School education is standardized and many subjects are covered very rapidly.
        All students have to take several classes at fixed times and study six or seven subjects a day. Teachers press on with classes whether students have mastered the previous subject or not. Furthermore, there are too many students per class. It is hard to master all the subjects and develop every student's aptitude.
        Private tutoring, on the other hand, teaches certain subjects professionally and provides students the essential information they need to pass the entrance exams. Private classes are composed of only a few students. Therefore, many students and parents believe that private tutoring is more effective than public school education.
        Because respect for teachers' as educators has declined as a result of a series of incidents involving bribery, violence, sexual harassment, and so on, parents distrust the schools. The negative aspects of conservative schools increase the distrust of parents.
        When I took a class in teaching methods two years ago, I met an official at the Education Ministry in Tongduchon. He said that the ministry was promoting an open educational system, as opposed to the current cram-school system.
        Such a system will be creative and use various methods, including the use of such materials such as television and computers, having a day that parents can join in a class, discussion and presentation for developing students' creativity, and so on. However, teachers, especially older teachers, will not easily adapt themselves to the new system.
        Although schools are trying to reform the educational system and the relationship between teachers and parents, there has been no progress. Actually, students are bored, both with the rigid and monotonous school education and with the teachers.
        Some students are skeptical of conservative and standardized schools, so they drop out of school on their own accord. Instead, they receive private tutoring that is more free, suitable for their level, and from younger and more open-minded educators.
        Until now, status in Korean society has depended on getting a degree from a prestigious university. Because of that, most students take an entrance exam to enter a good university. This social trend, that is to say today's entrance exam system, is the root cause of the problem that has resulted in the spread of private tutoring.
        There is no other way to evaluate the students' achievements as objectively as an exam does. So all students try to get as high a score as possible by receiving as much private tutoring as possible. Their parents willingly pay for their private tutoring because they believe that such tutoring is the most efficient way to prepare for the entrance exam. If they don't receive private tutoring, they will fall behind the students who do receive it.
        Most Korean students want to enter a good university, and their parents also want them to do this. They think that it promises advancement in society in which the prestige of a university degree is valued highly.
        But it is true that public school education doesn't support their hope. So they usually depend on private tutoring, although it is very expensive. Unfortunately, there are some students who drop out of school. Their parents agree with their decision. However, even if private tutoring is banned again, students who depend on it will probably continue to use it.
        Therefore, schools should admit that they have a backward system, throw away their authority, and start to change by themselves. The Education Ministry should support schools that develop quality education programs and hire teachers who can compete with private tutoring.